


A Many-Splendoured Thing

by drywitticisms



Category: Black Panther (2018)
Genre: Angst and Romance, Black Panther (2018) Spoilers, Canon Compliant, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Getting to Know Each Other, Light Angst, Love Triangles, Partner Betrayal, Post-Betrayal, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-28
Updated: 2018-04-09
Packaged: 2019-03-25 01:45:07
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,565
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13823853
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/drywitticisms/pseuds/drywitticisms
Summary: After the events of Black Panther, Okoye finds herself out on the outs with her husband as she struggles to work on their marriage in the face of his betrayal. She was prepared for the long, arduous journey ahead. What she didn’t count on was another player throwing his hat in the ring challenging everything she’s ever known in the process.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> The title originates from Han Suyin's novel with the same name.
> 
> Also, this story contains spoilers, spoilers, spoilers! If you have not watched the movie, I suggest you don't read this one. I will miss your readership, but I have to warn you about the spoilers that are scattered throughout this story.

She didn’t even want to look at him, but she knew she had to. This man - her husband, her other half - deliberately went against her best interests and sided with that .. usurper.

She didn’t know where to go from here. She couldn’t just walk away from him. 

It wasn’t that simple. Life wasn’t that simple. 

If only she was a lesser person. If only she wasn’t who she was, then things could be a lot easier. 

Her walking away from her husband and the King’s best friend would not go over well. She was T’Challa’s General and she was in charge of the Dora Milaje. Her position held great honor. 

Leaving her husband could possibly bring dishonor to herself, her family, and the king, as well. She had to tread lightly during this difficult time as she determined what she needed to do about her husband’s mistakes. 

W’Kabi was being held in one of the temporary jail cells while the King, along with the Elder Council, determined what needed to be done about his treason. 

She spoke up on his behalf before the council; she did ask they show mercy on the King’s former best friend. She did all she could, and now it was in Bast’s hands. 

She was angry with W’Kabi, but she didn’t want to see him imprisoned or dead. She was still in love with him. Just because someone does something downright awful to you doesn’t mean your feelings stop. 

Things weren’t that easy where you could suddenly turn off your emotions, feelings, love for someone when they hurt you. 

No, that wasn’t Okoye’s life right now. It simply wasn’t an option for her. 

She just didn’t know what to do. She never had to deal with anything like this before, at least not to this extent. 

Slowly walking towards the cell, she watched as W’Kabi quickly jumped to his feet at her presence. 

She thought she’d been walking pretty quietly or maybe her muted steps were extremely loud in the solitary of this temporary holding cell. 

“You came.” He replied with a hopeful look on his face. 

“I did.” She replied before cutting her eyes at him and clearing her throat. 

“I know you’re angry with me, and I’m sorry. I’m sorry for everything.” He admitted. 

She simply stared at him as she gauged the sincerity of his apology; she deemed his apology genuine and nodded at his words. 

“Contrary to popular belief, you are still my husband. Although you may have forgotten that, I haven’t.” She said. 

At her words, W’Kabi looked remorseful and guilty. She knew he couldn’t deny that his actions proved to be selfish and shortsighted. 

“You’re right. I wasn’t thinking about anything else. I was only thinking about getting my vengeance. You know how my parents’ deaths haunted me. You knew about the dreams. Please understand my position.” He begged. 

“I **do** understand; what I don’t understand is why you felt you couldn’t come to me. I know you, and so does T’Challa. We both know you more than you care to admit, yet you still chose to side with the enemy instead of coming to us!” 

“I did go to T’Challa. He didn’t care!” 

Okoye inhaled sharply at his words as she spoke through gritted teeth, “That’s not true. I know it’s not. T’Challa is not that kind of man, and you know it. You’re just bitter about the lack of justice, so you’ve bought into the propaganda of a murderer.” 

“In some ways, he was right.” W’Kabi stated. 

“No, he wasn’t. He wasn’t right, and the fact that you think that is why we’re in the position we’re in right now.” Okoye said with a slow confused shake of her head. “I don’t know what’s happened to you; you are not the man I married.” 

He said nothing in response to her words causing Okoye to rethink her decision to come here in the first place. Maybe it was too soon? If the council decided to spare him hard labor or execution, then he’d be returning back to their home. 

Regardless of how she felt, she was going to have to deal with this eventually. It was a good thing that she’d come here, because ripping off the band-aid was the better option in this situation. 

“I spoke on your behalf to the Elder Council before I came here, so I think they may spare you.” Okoye admitted. 

“Thank you. I know you didn’t have to do that, but I’m glad you did.” 

“It’s what’s expected of a wife - she stands by her husband, even when he’s wrong.” Okoye said. 

Before W’Kabi could reply, the door to the small room swung open interrupting their conversation. 

“Okoye!” The girl exclaimed as she skipped towards the older woman. 

“Shuri, what’s going on?” Okoye asked. 

“The Elder Council made a decision; they’ve chosen to spare W’Kabi. Brother spoke on his behalf and was able to find a loophole explaining why W'Kabi was actually innocent. And with Erik’s death, he convinced the council that the threat no longer existed.” 

Okoye heard W’Kabi release a deep, relieved breath behind her. 

“That’s good.” Okoye said to Shuri before turning back towards W’Kabi, “Let this be a lesson to you. I want you to remember this, because you were lucky.” 

“Of course, he has to stay here for the rest of the night. But they plan on releasing bright and early in the morning. Brother will personally come to you before you’re released.” Shuri explained. 

W’Kabi nodded, “Thank you, Shuri.” 

“Don’t thank me; thank Brother. And you will have ample time to do so when you see him tomorrow morning.” Shuri said as she narrowed her eyes at the bemused man standing in front of her. 

“Okay, Shuri, it’s time to go.” Okoye said as she walked alongside Shuri as she gently guided the teenager out of the room. 

She threw one last look over her shoulder at her husband - the man she thought she would share the rest of her life with. She could tell he didn’t want her to leave, but their individual choices lead them here and there was nothing either of them could do about it now. 

They couldn’t change the past. 

She didn’t know what would happen now, but she _did_ know that this was just the beginning.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> T'Challa calls for an impromptu meeting to deliver some interesting news.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love all the love. When I asked you guys to let me know that you were here, you did just that.
> 
> So, I thank you for all the love and support.
> 
> I guess you can consider this to be a missing scene, of sorts.
> 
> Enjoy the chapter! I'll see you at the end.

Being the General of the one of the fiercest group of warrior women in the world meant everything to Okoye. She took her job seriously and remained loyal to the King.

Regardless of who that may be at the time, she took an oath to protect the King and his throne. Even if she wasn’t too fond of the current sitting King at the time, that was still her job. **_That_** was what she signed up for. 

What she **didn’t** sign up for was waiting in the lobby area of T’Challa’s throne room for 15 minutes for a meeting she wasn't informed about until just now. 

Unlike last time, she wasn’t quite sure what the meaning of this meeting was. All she knew was that she was to be in attendance as the General of the Dora Milaje. Sometimes, when she couldn’t show up for T’Challa, she’d send Ayo in her place. 

But now that everything had begun to somewhat settle down again, she was back in her rightful place .. by his side. 

Being left in the dark rubbed her the wrong way. She knew things needed time to get back to the way it was before Hurricane Killmonger came along and destroyed everything in his path. 

But she was sure she and T’Challa were back on the same page, but his silence and refusal to let her in on what was happening right now was troubling. 

She’d been stuck in her own thoughts of what this meant for her relationship with T’Challa when she felt an arm gently tap her shoulder. 

Easily falling into fight mode, she turned around with her spear in her hands raised towards the offending hand that dared touch her. 

She was met with the bemused expression of her King. 

“My King, I’m sorry!” Okoye exclaimed before quickly dropping her spear back towards her side. 

“It is okay, Okoye. It is your job to always be on guard for enemies. It was my mistake for sneaking up on you. I apologize.” T’Challa replied in a soft accented voice. 

Okoye took a few deep, cleansing breaths in an attempt to slow down her heart rate. She knew she should be careful about where she pointed her spear these days. But with everything that’s been going on lately, it was difficult not to be hypervigilant of everything happening around them. 

“My King, I must ask - what is the purpose of this meeting?” She asked. 

T’Challa opened his mouth to respond before Okoye’s ears were met with the faint sound of barking. An incredulous look crossed her face as she thought her mind was playing tricks on her. 

But going by the look on T’Challa’s now smirking face, she knew it was no joke. 

She wasn’t hearing things. 

It wasn’t long before the hulking man finally completed his grand entrance with his fur, bones, and loud vocalizations. 

“What are you doing here? I thought you were done with us.” Okoye hissed. 

“Well, it seems your king drives a hard bargain. He wanted the Jabari to finally take their rightful spot on the Elder Council. We’ve always had a spot here, but no other king has actually extended a genuine invitation, so here we are.” M’Baku replied with a large smile as he motioned towards his silent guard of equally muscular men standing behind him. 

“T’Challa, is this true?” 

“Yes, I wanted to usher in a new era in my reign - to reach as many tribes in Wakanda as possible. It starts with giving them a voice.” He explained. 

You could have knocked Okoye over with a leaf. She was shocked by his words and actions. 

She wasn’t shocked by the king choosing to do this as she always knew T’Challa was a good man. She was more shocked that M’Baku and the Jabari actually accepted the offer in the first place. 

From the minor interactions she’s had with them in the past, she got the sense that M’Baku didn’t think too highly of T’Challa and thought him inferior. Mainly because of T’Challa’s dependence on technology. 

But maybe things were starting to change? One could hope, because things had been shaky between the Wakandan tribes for the last few years now. 

“Do you wish for me to leave, General Okoye?” He questioned with a raised eyebrow. 

Cutting her eyes at the jokester to her left, she turned back towards T’Challa, “I think it’s time we commence the meeting if everyone’s here.” 

M’Baku simply snickered at her words as she forced herself to ignore him. She was a General; she wasn’t one for puerile games and immature pranks. Yet, this fearsome man was nothing more than a child stuck in a man’s body. 

“General Okoye, I predict that I will grow on you one day.” M’Baku declared before giving her a quick once-over and turning on his heels to enter the throne room with his guard. 

“I know why you chose to do this, but are you sure this is a good idea?” Okoye asked before turning back towards T’Challa. 

“I do. I think this will help our country grow closer and rebuild the bonds that have disintegrated with time.” 

Okoye remain silent in the face of his words forcing him to speak again. 

“Do you not trust M’Baku? If you don’t, then you have a strange way of showing it.” He asked alluding to the events of her forcing her own husband to stand down in an attempt to save the man in question. 

“It’s not that, my King. I don’t know what it is; I just feel strange with him here and not W’Kabi.” She answered. 

T’Challa sighed, “I know what you mean, but we may have to get accustomed to doing these meetings without W’Kabi for awhile.” 

“What does that mean?” 

“That’s what this meeting is about.” He said before motioning for her to enter the throne room before him. 

**\---------------------------------------------------------------------**

They’d been going over the more simpler, mundane things on the docket for the better part of 20 minutes when they finally got to the point of the impromptu meeting.

“Next up on the docket - discussing W’Kabi’s fate.” The River Tribe Elder said. 

“I thought we’d already decided what to do with him,” Okoye said. 

“We have, General. But his actions cannot go unpunished. We chose not to sentence him to hard labor or death, but there still needs to be some consequences for his actions.” The Elder stated. 

“What did you have in mind?” T’Challa questioned. 

“We thought it would be a good idea for him to not be present at the council meetings for at least a year or until he’s shown us that he remains loyal to Wakanda and Wakanda only, and we’ve decided to utilize M’Baku and the Jabari Tribe as the back-up for the Dora Milaje.” The Elder explained. 

A hush fell over the room at his words. 

Okoye was stunned by what was being said, but she always saw it coming. After receiving the news last night, she knew it was too good to be true. She knew W’Kabi had gotten off easy, but she couldn’t fathom it going this far. 

“Of course, this is just temporary but M’Baku has agreed to allow the services of he and his tribe if you so should need it. The Border Tribe will still fulfill their duties in protecting the borders, but they will not have as much freedom as before in lieu of recent events. ” The Elder explained before turning towards Okoye. “Do you accept this offer?” 

“Yes, I accept.” She said. 

The Elder nodded at her words. Okoye’s eyes were finally torn away from the Elder as she looked over at M’Baku. Instead of being met with the ever-present, lazy smirk, she was met with a thoughtful expression as he studied her. 

She didn’t know what it was about M’Baku - sure, he swooped in to save the day when they needed him but he was also gunning for the throne once upon a time. 

Shuri had told her of how M’Baku saved T’Challa when it would have been more beneficial for him to just let the king die instead, so she could admit that she was a little wrong about him. 

She stared back at him for a full 30 seconds before her attention was directed back at T’Challa when he began to speak. 

“Now that we’ve gone over everything on the docket, this meeting is adjourned.” He said. 

With his words, everyone began rising from the seats to exit the throne room. 

“I hope you’re right about this.” Okoye said as she stood next to T’Challa as they both watched M’Baku leave with everyone else. 

“I am. You’ll see - M’Baku will prove to be one of our greatest allies.” He said. “You saved him from W’Kabi’s wrath. So, there must be _some_ part of you that believes in him.” 

Okoye remained quiet. T’Challa was right. She **did** believe that M’Baku was a good man, but there was also a time when she considered W’Kabi to be a good man too. 

On one hand, she knew that emotion sometimes overcame rationale and logic. Being a good man lasted until it didn’t. All it took was someone pushing the right buttons and a good man could become a dangerous man in the blink of an eye. 

On the other hand, you had men like T’Challa, who remained good men in the face of great hardship. So, it was entirely possible for some men to remember who they are during a time when it would be more feasible for them to forget. 

She hoped M’Baku fell in the latter category. She had no way of knowing for sure, but only time would tell.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I took a **lot** of creative license when writing this chapter. I'm not a comic book girl; I have never read a comic book in my entire life as its not my thing, so I could be completely off-base with some of the things I've written in this chapter. I don't know much about the Black Panther world according to the comics (save for a few things I've come across on Twitter  & Tumblr), so I'm not sure if that's how _any_ of this goes down.
> 
>  Anyway, I'm not sure when the 3rd chapter is coming. I haven't started on it yet, so I don't know when you can expect it. It could be the end of the week or 2 weeks from now. Who knows? It just depends.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Okoye is taking back her life bit by bit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm blown away by the support you guys have given me. I've been watching the number of hits I've been getting, and I'm so proud of you guys for making your presence known. 
> 
> So, this one is **something** , I must say. You may see a different side to Okoye, or maybe it's a side you've only gotten a glimpse of in the movie. Either way, Okoye is on 100 in this chapter.

Grunting, Okoye forced herself to lower her body towards the floor a third time before releasing a cleansing breath.

_One._

She held her breath as she released another breath through the pain in order to push through the exercise. 

_Two._

She found that working out cleared her head quite a bit, and it also kept her body in tip-top shape to protect the King and remain General. 

_Three._

She also found that working out gave her the perfect excuse to stay away from home as long as possible. 

_Four._

She didn’t want to spend much time with W’Kabi since he’d been released from jail. 

_Five._

She knew it was probably not the best thing to do - avoiding home so she didn’t have to speak to her husband. But it was the only thing she could do right now that wouldn’t result in her saying something to him that she would regret later on. 

_Six._

“Okoye!” 

Sitting back on her feet, she gingerly removed her earbuds to look up at the visitor hovering above her. 

“Nakia.” She said. “What can I do for you?” 

“Is there somewhere we can talk or is now not a good time for you?” The other woman asked as she scanned the room full of other Dora Milaje members working out. 

“No, I can talk. We can take a seat over here; the Dora are pretty good at keeping secrets and allowing you the privacy you so desire.” Okoye replied with a smile as she motioned towards the empty bench strategically placed against the floor length, wall to wall mirror of the work out room. 

Once they both sat down, Okoye grabbed her canister full of water and took one long sip of the cool liquid. She felt like she was in Heaven; the feel of the liquid momentarily allowed her the opportunity to forget about the fact that she was about to have a very difficult conversation. 

After finally putting her canister down, she looked towards the other woman who seemed anxious. 

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you nervous before. What’s going on?” Okoye asked. 

“I just came by to talk.” Nakia said. “T'Challa tells me you're not too pleased with him regarding his decision to open up the borders.” 

“I know where you stand, Nakia, and you know where I stand.” She reminded as she predicted another rather heated debate between the two of them. 

“I know, but we need to reach a common ground. We have to coexist with each other, and I don't want this to keep up from doing our jobs.” She replied. 

“Of course not. Unlike some people, I know how to take my personal feelings out of a mission.” Okoye said. 

Okoye held no ill-will for the other woman; she truly didn't, but she needed to remind the other woman of what she had to deal with on a daily basis as the General of the Dora Milaje. She was on the front lines when it came to Wakanda every day - when she was protecting T'Challa and when she wasn't. When Nakia was off doing her covert missions as a spy, Okoye had to live and thrive in Wakanda. Nakia could just take off whenever she wanted; she didn't understand. 

Nakia was speechless for a moment as her mouth open and shut a few times before she decided to speak again. 

“There's no other way - we have to open up the Wakanda borders to help people, especially people that look like us.” 

“You already got your wish. You didn’t have to come here and explain any of this to me again.” Okoye said. 

“The last time we talked, things didn’t go so well.” Nakia said. "You don't have to like me, but we need to be a united front when it comes to Wakanda. T'Challa will look to both of us to help him make decisions as we go forward with this." 

“I don't dislike you, Nakia. We just have differing perspectives when it comes to Wakanda. There’s no resentment between us. We won’t agree on everything, so you don't have to worry.” Okoye reassured. 

“We don’t always see eye to eye, but I wanted to see if it was possible for us to come to a compromise, of sorts.” 

“I have one question. Just one.” 

“Shoot.” Nakia said. 

“Let’s say we’ve opened our borders, and these European  & American 'superpowers' come in and try to pillage and plunder this land for our resources? What’s the solution?” Okoye asked. 

“I believe in Wakanda, and I believe that we can protect our country if the situation arises. It won't turn out the way you think; in situations like these, there is always risk. But the reward is greater than the risk in this case.” 

“That’s not the way the world works, Nakia. I'm not as ready and willing to sacrifice Wakanda as you are.” Okoye said. 

“But we have to help people, Okoye!” Nakia exclaimed. "That's why I do what I do. I want to help people, and Wakanda has the resources to do just that. There's no reason we shouldn't try." 

“I’m not saying we shouldn’t help people, but I **_am_** saying that this is risky. This whole thing is risky. There’s a reason why we've stayed out of the affairs of other countries and why we've remained hidden this whole time. Or have you forgotten?” Okoye asked. 

“No, I haven’t forgotten. I just believe that we should allow people the chance to prove themselves by any means necessary. I’ve been out there on the front lines; I know what these people have seen and been through.” 

“I understand you feel a kinship to these people, and those people may not be the threat. But the people that are sitting behind those microphones at the United Nations? They **are** a threat. They’ve been a threat for a _long_ time, especially to people who don't look like them. I've been on the front lines when it comes to those people, and I know differently.” Okoye explained. She had been the General of the Dora Milaje for much longer than T'Challa was king. She knew better. 

“Something tells me you're wrong about them; you just have to give them a chance to prove you wrong. I know you want to hold on to tradition, but maybe it’s time we enter into a new reality.” 

“Tradition is what has kept us alive for all these years, and doing anything else could possibly kill us.” 

“I disagree. I have hope that these people aren't all bad; I have faith that we're doing this for the greater good and that it will outweigh all the cons.” Nakia said with a shake of her head. 

“I really hope you’re right.” Okoye said before standing to her feet officially ending their conversation as she went to finish her workout. 

And she did. 

Okoye grew up knowing what she wanted to do with her life. She always knew what her life’s calling would amount to, and that was to protect the King and Wakanda. 

Now, they were asking her to go against everything she stood for. 

She didn’t know if she could accept this decision, but she had to. 

She had no choice in the matter. 

She just hoped Nakia  & T'Challa were right. 

**\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

The sun had set behind the Wakandan mountains hours ago, and Okoye was finally home. 

She didn’t want to be here. She didn’t want to have to deal with her current reality, but she knew it was better to rip off the band-aid. 

It was better to deal with this now instead of constantly putting it off to deal with tomorrow. 

Releasing a loud sigh to herself, she turned the knob of her front door. 

As soon as she walked through the threshold, she was met with the remorseful face of her husband. 

Seeing her, he quickly stood to his feet. 

Closing the door behind her, Okoye fought the urge to roll her eyes at the man in front of her. 

She began taking off her armor in complete silence as she was relieved to find that W’Kabi had no urge to fill the silence with meaningless babble. 

After taking off her armor, she turned her back to him as she placed her kimoyo beads in the bowl next to the front door. 

“How was your work out with the Dora?” He asked. 

“It went. I talked to Nakia today. We had an interesting conversation.” She said. 

“What did the two of you talk about?” 

“Opening up our borders to outsiders.” She said before turning towards him with a humorless smirk. “But I’m sure you were happy to hear the news that T’Challa chose to open our world to outsiders. Isn’t that what you wanted all along?” 

“I know you may not believe the best in me right now, but that’s not what I wanted. I didn’t want what Erik wanted.” He slowly stated. 

“Are you sure? From where I was standing, you were standing in front of me and not alongside of me in that fight.” She shot back before sitting down to take off her shoes. 

“I think we can do some good. I think we can use our power as Wakandans to help other people. I’ve seen what people went through outside of those borders, Okoye.” He replied. 

“Save it.” She said as she held a hand up to him. “Nakia has already given me the same spiel earlier today, and I’m not in the mood to hear the same speech twice.” 

“What about us?” He quietly asked. 

“What _about_ us? You made your decision out on the battlefield. I’m here, aren’t I?” She asked. 

“But are you really here with **me**?” He asked as he stood to his feet so he could tower over her seated position. 

Okoye simply looked up at him with an unreadable expression as she thought about her words before speaking them. 

“I’m physically here, but I’m not sure where I am mentally. You’ve put me in a very difficult position, so I don’t know how I feel about you right now.” 

“And our marriage? Do you not know how to feel about that either?” He asked with a slight sneer of his lips. 

“ _I_ didn’t screw up! **You** did. You don’t get to be angry about any of this.” Okoye said with a slight flare of her nostrils. 

She couldn’t believe his nerve, but she held herself back a lot. She prepared for this, and she wouldn’t allow him to stray too far away from the script. 

“I know. I know. I’m sorry; I shouldn’t have said that. I’m just scared that you may want to walk away from this .. from us.” He said before falling to his knees to kneel in front of her. 

Taking her hands in his, he looked up at her, “I need to know that we’re still a team, even though I made a mistake.” 

Okoye didn’t know how to respond, but she knew she had to give him something. 

W’Kabi was her husband. 

Even though he screwed up, that fact didn’t change. 

“I just think we need some time apart for right now. I’m not asking for a divorce, but I need some time to deal with all of this.” She said as she gently slipped her hands out of his. 

“I’ll give you as much time as you need if it means I’ll have you for the rest of my life. I'm not giving up on us without a fight.” He declared with a small smile on his face. 

Taking her face into his hands, he tilted his face towards her before placing a gentle kiss on her full lips. Closing her eyes, Okoye allowed herself to be taken away by the kiss. Kissing him always felt like second nature to her. 

She could feel herself getting weaker by the second. 

Kissing him back, Okoye realized how easy it would be to just fall in bed with him again. 

But she wanted to do this with a clear head. She needed to be able to walk away from him without sex clouding her mind and her judgment. 

Gently pulling back from him as she licked her lips savoring the taste of him for the last time, she opened her eyes to look at his hopeful face. 

“Time.” She reiterated as she scanned his handsome face. 

His brown eyes lit up as he nodded in agreement with her words. 

Wrapping his arms around her body, Okoye hugged him back. 

But she didn’t feel as good as she thought she would. She knew he was hopeful about the status of their relationship, but she didn’t know if she could do this. 

She didn’t know if she could find it in herself to forgive and forget. 

She wanted to make it work, but she didn’t know if her desire to make it work would be enough. 

She didn’t know, and that frightened her.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It took me awhile to write this one. I was stuck on this one, which is mostly a transitional chapter. Even though it does feature our favorite Mountain Man, I still consider it to be a transitional chapter. I wrote the next chapter before I wrote this one, and I was stuck on how to get from Point A to Point B, so to speak. I had a little mental block in trying to connect the previous chapter to the next one.
> 
> Let's just say there was **no** way I could have posted the next chapter in the place of this one without you guys being confused. Yeah, that should give you a little bit of a heads up on what's to come. Things are going to speed up a LOT with this next chapter, so enjoy this slow, leisure pace while you can. Things will be kicking off in the next chapter. ;)

**_3 weeks later…_ **

A mere 3 weeks felt like a lifetime for Okoye. She was so busy dealing with the fallout of the new outreach initiative that she didn't have time to deal with her own messy personal life.

She and Nakia hadn't had anymore run-ins since that day, and she was grateful for it.

There was no point in talking about it again, because her opinion wouldn't change.

It didn't make things easy when she attended various meetings and conferences alongside them, but she still knew how to do her job. Her job required her to leave her personal opinions out of the workplace, so that's what she did.

The main objective of her job was to protect the King, even if she **did** think he was making a huge mistake.

Going home was something else that proved to be stressful for her.

Even though W’Kabi had temporarily moved out of their home 3 weeks ago, she still didn’t want to go home to an empty house.

Of course, those were the times where her heart ached from missing him. She was angry with him, and even a bit disgusted by his actions, but she still couldn’t help but to think of the good times.

One mistake shouldn’t completely destroy a home.

Okoye knew this, but she also realized that things happened that were out of their control that made it all the more possible.

Even if W’Kabi’s intentions were good, he should have known that he was putting her in a difficult position.

He sided with a stranger over the king and even attempted to kill said king, and it was Okoye’s duty to protect the king by any means necessary.

T’Challa wasn’t dead, so he hadn’t yielded yet. At which point, W’Kabi should have dropped his weapons and called his men off.

Alas, it didn’t happen.

Instead, he made things even more difficult by forcing her to wield her spear to him in defense of T’Challa.

He backed her into a corner, and wanted to remind her of their love at the very last moment.

It was a moment of convenience, but he underestimated her love for Wakanda.

When Okoye told him in the past that she always dreamed of being a part of the Dora Milaje, it wasn’t a mere throwaway line. She truly meant it, which should have been a flashing sign to W’Kabi that she wouldn’t do anything to jeopardize that.

Even if it meant forcing her husband to stand down by rather violent means in order to protect that dream.

In the midst of all this, Okoye’s komoya beads malfunctioned.

As a General of an army, she needed to keep the lines of communication as open as possible in case of an emergency.

Which is why she found herself taking an elevator to the top of the underground domicile that housed Shuri’s lab.

Okoye knew if anyone could fix her beads, it would be her.

Hearing the ding of the elevator as she arrived to the correct floor, she stepped off the elevator into the air conditioned room of Shuri’s lab. It was at a comfortable temperature as the location of it being underground could make the room chillier than normal.

Turning the corner, she was met with the hunched form of the teenage genius.

“Hunching over that way doesn’t help with your posture.”

Shuri jumped in fright as she turned towards Okoye grabbing her chest.

“For Bast’s sakes, Okoye! Make more noise when you enter my lab, would you?” Shuri said before taking the opportunity to catch her breath.

“You would do horribly as a Dora. You need to be aware of your surroundings at all times.” Okoye replied as she walked towards one of the many gadgets scattered throughout the room.

Gently caressing the cool metal of some unknown metal, she turned back towards Shuri.

“Why are you here anyway?” Shuri asked.

“My kimoya beads malfunctioned. One minute, I’m speaking with Ayo about our itinerary for the next week and the next minute, everything becomes garbled before completely fizzling out.”

“Okay, let’s take a look.” Shuri said as she walked towards the older woman to take a look at her beads.

Removing the beads, Okoye handed them over to Shuri, who quickly took them over to her workstation and began tinkering with them.

“How’s the outreach project going?”

“It’s going. T’Challa tells me that you’re still not on board with this plan.” Shuri said before throwing a look at Okoye and looking back down at her work.

“I’m not. I'm fine with the outreach project, but I'm not fine with him opening up our borders. It’s not a secret. I understand it, but it doesn’t mean I agree with it.”

“Look at it this way - at least we can control the narrative a lot more by doing it this way.”

“You know, everyone keeps saying that but all I see is an opportunity for outsiders to take what’s ours and leave us battered and broken.”

“You won’t hear any arguments from me, because I feel the same way. I don’t mind helping these people, but I don’t agree with allowing outsiders to have unsupervised access to our country.”

“Exactly! I wish you could have been in the meetings with us when we discussed this. Even you see the issues that will come from something like this.”

“At the same time, I don’t see anything wrong with helping our people. Especially since they didn’t have the same fortune as we did of our ancestors not being forced from their homes to live in a strange place.”

“You’re right, and that’s the only advantage I see to this plan. I would love to help our people, but I just don’t know if it’s worth the risk.” Okoye said with a deep sigh.

“We won’t know until we know. Let’s wait and see what happens before we start making plans for the defense. You never know, they may just surprise us.” Shuri said as she handed Okoye’s beads back to her.

“Try them out.”

Okoye accepted the beads before pressing a few buttons to make sure she could pull up her contacts and settings. She nodded in approval at Shuri’s handiwork before putting the beads back around her wrist.

“I’m impressed. I knew you could do it. What would the people of Wakanda do without your intelligence?” Okoye said with a large smile.

“Die.” Shuri stated before laughing at her own joke.

Okoye shook her head at the younger girl as she thought about Shuri’s words.

Shuri was right, but Okoye still held her own reservations about the whole thing.

****

**\---------------------------------------------------------**

She’d been sitting on the floor of her living room attempting to meditate and do some yoga to calm her nerves. She wasn’t sure if it was helping any, but she went for a run earlier and didn’t feel motivated enough to go for another one.

Standing to her feet, she walked towards the window and looked out at the skyline of Wakanda.

She was in awe with the beauty of her home country. She’d traveled many places, but none of those places ever held a candle to Wakanda.

Wakanda was beautiful in its own way, and was different than anything she’d ever seen before.

It was easy to fall in love with this country, which is why she could understand why outsiders wanted to be a part of it.

It was more so that she needed a second opinion than anything else. She knew how T’Challa, Nakia, and Shuri felt. But maybe she also needed to hear from someone who wasn’t in her immediate circle.

Maybe there was something else she was missing that would help her accept this more.

Of course, she would probably never wholeheartedly accept this but there had to be something that would make this easier to swallow, at least.

While looking out at the skyline, she was overcome with an idea. She didn’t know if it was a good idea, but she wanted to try.

Slipping on her shoes, she grabbed her furs and wrapped the material tightly around her body.

****

**\---------------------------------------------------**

Making the trek up the mountain was the easy part.

Convincing the man in charge to talk to her was the difficult part.

She knew who she had to be while walking up the mountain. She knew which face she needed to put on when speaking with the hulking man who lead the Jabari Tribe.

****

She managed to convince the other men of the Jabari that she meant no harm to their leader and that she only wished to speak with him. After watching them speak in hushed tones to M'Baku through their beads, she was finally granted permission to take an audience with him.

Being escorted into the main room alone surrounded by the people of Jabari felt foreign to her. She rarely walked into a room without at least one of the Dora. It felt strange, but she was not frightened.

No, Okoye was a general. Fear had no room inside of her if she were to lead an army of her own.

She may not have her army with her in the present moment, but she was a one-woman army and she would embrace it.

As they all stopped in front of the man sitting in the chair in the middle of the room, the Jabari threw out a few chants before taking their respective positions around the room in defensive mode.

She never took her eyes of the man in front of her as that would signify cowardice. She studied the man who sat at attention with his weapon in his right hand. Everything about him sent out signals of strength and pride.

Okoye was many things, but she was no coward. She would not coward before this man, even if she were alone.

“To what do I owe this pleasure, General?” He asked.

Scanning the men around them, she turned back towards him without speaking.

Her message was clear.

Staring back at her without breaking eye contact, he finally spoke, “Leave us.”

The men quickly obeyed his orders before filing out one by one to leave the two alone in the main room.

“I’m well aware of how you feel about me and the rest of the King’s royal court, but I wanted to speak with you.” She replied.

“I’m listening.” He said before placing his weapon against the side of his chair.

Okoye watched the tension leave his body as he relaxed into the chair. She saw it as a good sign. She wasn’t a threat, and he didn’t see her as one. That would make this conversation go over smoother if they were free from resentment and suspicious. At least temporarily.

“You and I may not agree on much, but we both agree on preserving tradition.” She said.

Nodding at her words, he mimed for her to continue talking.

“While we may not have a say in what the king chooses, we do have a say in what we choose to do.”

“General, I must say, I was not expecting this when I’d gotten word from my men that you were making your way up the mountain.”

“I thought it best to talk this over with someone who feels the same way I do.”

“I thought you didn’t trust me.” He replied with a rise of his brow.

“It’s not that I don’t trust you; I just don’t know you.” Okoye explained. “If I didn’t trust you, I wouldn’t have come up here alone nor would I have saved your life.”

“Oh, that’s right. You **did** save my life. How is your husband, by the way?” M’Baku asked with faux interest.

“I’m not here to talk about my husband. I’m here to ask how you do it. How are you okay with any of this?” She asked as she waved towards the kingdom behind him.

“Fortunately, most people don’t venture this far into the mountains. It’s far too cold, so I won’t have to worry about the outsiders as much.” He replied. “But I **_am_** aware of how this will affect all of us, so I simply hope for the best. If things go awry, we know how to defend ourselves and our country.”

Okoye nodded at his words as she was struck speechless.

It’s almost as if everyone around her was ready to move forward, and she was still stuck in the past. She didn’t see it as a bad thing. She saw it as a badge of honor.

“When the outside came knocking and my husband opened the door, I lost a member of the Dora. I’m not as ready as everyone else is to move into the future.” Okoye declared.

“Nor should you be. I still question how good of a king T’Challa will be, but he has good intentions. Even if they are slightly misguided, he still has faith that he can change the world. I can appreciate that.” M’Baku said. “We lost a lot of good people that day - warriors, fighters. But maybe we’ll be better equipped the next time it happens.”

“There’s nothing wrong with tradition. There’s nothing wrong with maintaining the old way of life.” Okoye argued.

“No, there isn’t. But there’s also nothing wrong with allowing innovation and progression to make its way into our borders either. We do have to make slight changes as the world around is changing. People are changing the way they think, and we need to catch up.”

“Says the man who won’t wholeheartedly accept technology into his life.” Okoye shot back.

“Well, General, that’s my cross to bear. I have yet to see your technology do what my weapons _can’t_ do. I can still protect my tribe without completely forgetting my way of life by allowing this new technology to be my sole means of protection.”

“But how did you reach that conclusion?”

“As you can see, I haven’t completely ignored technology. I just feel as if the weapons we have that were forged from vibranium are just as capable. It’s like with your spear.” He said as he nodded down at the spear next to her body. “Some people would question why you chose to keep your spear instead of upgrading to a firearm.”

“Firearms would be more convenient, but spears never run out of bullets. I can protect myself and my people for as long as there is breath in my body. Guns will protect me as long as I have the ammo.” She explained.

“It’s the same way I feel about my weapons forged by wood and vibranium. This weapon can protect me as long as I have breath in my body.” He said as he flipped the weapon over between his hands. “The weapons the Child Wonder makes work as long as the technology is there. If the technology isn’t there, then the weapon seizes to be a weapon.”

Okoye found herself agreeing with him; and in that moment, she finally understood Nakia’s perspective.

“Essentially, you’re saying we need to be able to utilize everything at our fingertips within reason.” Okoye explained, “But what does that have to do with opening up our borders?”

“When push comes to shove, maybe this will come in handy when the time comes. Establishing diplomatic relations with certain countries could bode well for our country.”

“Or it could completely destroy it.” Okoye muttered. “Look, I get it. I may not ever agree with this whole thing but I understand it.”

“Time will tell if this blows up in our faces. We just need to stand strong and have each other’s backs in case of things go south. We are Wakandans, first and foremost. I would hope your king understands that.” M’Baku replied pointedly as he emphasized his last point.

“Don’t worry about that. T’Challa hasn’t forgotten, but it would do well if you remembered as well. We both know that you consider yourself a better option for king.” Okoye reminded.

“That I do. However, I lost fair and square. I hold no ill will towards your king.” M’Baku said. “For now.”

Okoye simply stared at the man seated across from her.

That’s what it all boiled down to - remaining loyal to your own.

When all was said and done, they were all Wakandans and that was the most important thing to remember.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Buckle up, kids! Next chapter is officially the beginning of the end. Not the end of the story, but it is the end of boring exposition. Next chapter marks the beginning of all the delicious scandal, but in a classy way.


End file.
